Rulon C. Allred
Encyclopedia
Rulon Clark Allred was a homeopathic physician and chiropractor
in Salt Lake City and the leader of what is now the Apostolic United Brethren
, a breakaway sect of polygamous
Mormon fundamentalists in Utah
, Colorado
, and Arizona
, United States. He was murdered on the orders of Ervil LeBaron
, the head of a rival polygamous sect.
Allred began to assume greater responsibilities in the Short Creek, Arizona polygamous community following the paralytic stroke of its leader, Joseph White Musser. Allred was imprisoned for bigamy
following Arizona governor John Howard Pyle
's 1953 "Short Creek raid
", but resumed his polygamous lifestyle upon his release and during his imprisonment is when he met the LeBaron group through correspondence and eventually fled to Mexico to live on their compound with promises of wealth, yet that was not the case. Allred ultimately assumed leadership of a polygamous group.
In his later years Allred made no attempt to hide his polygamous beliefs and openly spoke of his adherence to the principle of plural marriage
on talk shows and in print interviews. Allred was the husband of at least seven wives and the father of forty-eight children. His daughter's biography reveals that after the original seven wives, Allred was pressured by his peers to be "sealed" to widows and other women requesting to be bound to "their prophet." At the time of his death, he had been sealed to 16 women in total. Though extremely conservative by the standards of outsiders, Allred's sect was far more moderate than the community headed by Rulon
and Warren Jeffs
and certainly more so than the organization headed by LeBaron. He was not on good terms with either of the rival sects, and he began receiving death threats from the LeBaron group in the 1960s.
On May 10, 1977, two women, both disguised by wigs and sunglasses, visited his office in Murray, Utah
and opened fire with handguns. Only Allred was injured; he died of his wounds the same day. One of the women was later identified as Rena Chynoweth
, one of LeBaron's wives. Although acquitted (Chynoweth was found not guilty in a 9-3 jury ruling), Chynoweth later confessed to the crime in her memoir, The Blood Covenant. LeBaron was eventually convicted of association with several other murders, including that of his daughter, Rebecca.
Allred's family is the subject of two memoirs written by one of his daughters, Dorothy Allred Solomon
: In My Father's House and Predators, Prey, and Other Kinfolk: Growing Up in Polygamy. Samuel W. Taylor
's I Have Six Wives was based on Allred's life. Allred's niece, Irene Spencer
, writes of her uncle in her memoir Shattered Dreams: My Life As A Polygamist's Wife. Spencer, now a remarried monogamist, was the second of ten wives of LeBaron's younger brother and opponent, Verlan.
Chiropractor
A Chiropractor, according to the Association of Chiropractic Colleges , "focuses on the relationship between the body's main structures – the skeleton, the muscles and the nerves – and the patient's health. Chiropractors believe that health can be improved and preserved by making adjustments to...
in Salt Lake City and the leader of what is now the Apostolic United Brethren
Apostolic United Brethren
The Apostolic United Brethren is a polygamous Mormon fundamentalist church within the Latter Day Saint movement. The sect is not affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
, a breakaway sect of polygamous
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
Mormon fundamentalists in Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, and Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, United States. He was murdered on the orders of Ervil LeBaron
Ervil LeBaron
Ervil Morrell LeBaron was the leader of a polygamous Mormon fundamentalist group who ordered the killings of many of his opponents, using the religious doctrine of blood atonement to justify the murders...
, the head of a rival polygamous sect.
Biography
Having turned away from the polygamous religion of his father and grandfather as a young man, Allred's decision to take plural wives came in his twenties following what he described as a vision; the decision resulted in the estrangement of his first wife, Katherine.Allred began to assume greater responsibilities in the Short Creek, Arizona polygamous community following the paralytic stroke of its leader, Joseph White Musser. Allred was imprisoned for bigamy
Bigamy
In cultures that practice marital monogamy, bigamy is the act of entering into a marriage with one person while still legally married to another. Bigamy is a crime in most western countries, and when it occurs in this context often neither the first nor second spouse is aware of the other...
following Arizona governor John Howard Pyle
John Howard Pyle
John Howard Pyle was the ninth Governor of the U.S. state of Arizona, serving from 1951 to 1955. He was a Republican...
's 1953 "Short Creek raid
Short Creek raid
The Short Creek raid is the name given to Arizona state police and Arizona National Guard action against Mormon fundamentalists that took place on the morning of July 26, 1953, at Short Creek, Arizona. The Short Creek raid was the largest mass arrest of polygamists in American history...
", but resumed his polygamous lifestyle upon his release and during his imprisonment is when he met the LeBaron group through correspondence and eventually fled to Mexico to live on their compound with promises of wealth, yet that was not the case. Allred ultimately assumed leadership of a polygamous group.
In his later years Allred made no attempt to hide his polygamous beliefs and openly spoke of his adherence to the principle of plural marriage
Plural marriage
Polygamy was taught by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for more than half of the 19th century, and practiced publicly from 1852 to 1890.The Church's practice of polygamy has been highly controversial, both within...
on talk shows and in print interviews. Allred was the husband of at least seven wives and the father of forty-eight children. His daughter's biography reveals that after the original seven wives, Allred was pressured by his peers to be "sealed" to widows and other women requesting to be bound to "their prophet." At the time of his death, he had been sealed to 16 women in total. Though extremely conservative by the standards of outsiders, Allred's sect was far more moderate than the community headed by Rulon
Rulon Jeffs
Rulon Timpson Jeffs was the leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a Mormon fundamentalist organization based in Colorado City, Arizona....
and Warren Jeffs
Warren Jeffs
Warren Steed Jeffs was the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints . In 2011, Jeffs was convicted of two felony counts of child sexual assault....
and certainly more so than the organization headed by LeBaron. He was not on good terms with either of the rival sects, and he began receiving death threats from the LeBaron group in the 1960s.
On May 10, 1977, two women, both disguised by wigs and sunglasses, visited his office in Murray, Utah
Murray, Utah
Murray is a city situated on the Wasatch Front in the core of Salt Lake Valley in the U.S. state of Utah. Named for territorial governor Eli Murray, it is the state's fourteenth largest city. According to the 2010 census, Murray has approximately 46,746 residents.Murray is close to Salt Lake City,...
and opened fire with handguns. Only Allred was injured; he died of his wounds the same day. One of the women was later identified as Rena Chynoweth
Rena Chynoweth
Rena Chynoweth is a former Mormon fundamentalist who shot Rulon C. Allred dead in 1977. Acquitted of murder in a criminal trial, Chynoweth later admitted to killing Allred.-Early life:...
, one of LeBaron's wives. Although acquitted (Chynoweth was found not guilty in a 9-3 jury ruling), Chynoweth later confessed to the crime in her memoir, The Blood Covenant. LeBaron was eventually convicted of association with several other murders, including that of his daughter, Rebecca.
Allred's family is the subject of two memoirs written by one of his daughters, Dorothy Allred Solomon
Dorothy Allred Solomon
Dorothy Allred was born to Mormon fundamentalist leader Rulon C. Allred and his fourth plural wife. She was the 28th of her father's 48 children. In 1977, her father was murdered by agents of rival polygamist leader Ervil LeBaron....
: In My Father's House and Predators, Prey, and Other Kinfolk: Growing Up in Polygamy. Samuel W. Taylor
Samuel W. Taylor
Samuel Woolley Taylor was an American novelist, scriptwriter and historian.- Biography :Taylor was born in Provo, Utah to Janet "Nettie" Maria Woolley and John W. Taylor, the son of John Taylor, the late president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
's I Have Six Wives was based on Allred's life. Allred's niece, Irene Spencer
Irene Spencer
Irene Spencer is an American author and a widow of Verlan LeBaron, brother of former prophet Joel LeBaron of the Church of the Firstborn of the Fulness of Times, a fundamentalist Mormon offshoot.-Early life:...
, writes of her uncle in her memoir Shattered Dreams: My Life As A Polygamist's Wife. Spencer, now a remarried monogamist, was the second of ten wives of LeBaron's younger brother and opponent, Verlan.
External links
- http://dorothyallredsolomon.com
- http://www.mormonfundamentalism.com/Photos/RulonCAllred.htm